Latest / College Football Nobodies / Week 2 Preview
Transcript
- Kevin Ivers: Welcome back to College Football, Nobody's Everybody. I am your host, Kevin, along with my co-host again, Erich We are excited for a week two preview show today. Erich, I think you would agree, week one was phenomenal. Amazing to have a real college football Saturday back in all the games. But week one, as far as a matchup perspective, always leaves a little bit to be desired. It's fun, of course, just to see your team play. So I know fans out there, myself included, right, with a a lower matchup. It doesn't really matter because it's week one. But week two now, the competitive landscape goes up for a lot of these teams. We have good on good matchups everywhere, more ranked matchups, and I'm excited to get into it all. What a crazy week one, by the way. I mean, we had everything going on from, of course, the Michigan, Western Michigan, whatever you want to call that. Erich: . Kevin Ivers: LSU this week, you know, might be terminated from the SEC. We had the the power outage on Monday in Tallahassee. So no shortage topics, but of course at College Football Nobodies, we love to keep most things on the field for our discussion. So with that said, Erich, what do we got on tap for our week two college football nobodies show? Erich: We're gonna go through all the cool games, well, what we believe to be the cool games. We'll go through our categories again. We'll have the same categories as last week. So we will have the commissioner of Jersey colors color palette of the week, myself, we'll have Kevin doing the environment of the week. We'll give you our point spread let down of the week. We'll give you our upset of the week and we'll give you what we think is our game of the week, which. If you looked at the slate of games should probably be pretty obvious to most people. But week two, I think everyone had this circled. You look at week one, you're like, great, we'll be back. Let's see how these teams look. know, half the teams probably are disappointed with how they looked in week one. Half the teams probably feel really great. Saw some surprises, but this slate is great for week two. We have a lot of great power four versus power four non-conference matchups. including a tone setting matchup in one of the games that we will obviously cover. But let's get into it, Kevin. Let's go right to a, what I think maybe potential upset alert. Maybe we'll talk about it later. But Mizzou traveling to Kansas. It feels like this used to be, used to be like a border battle game. We used to see quite a bit. It's been a long time. Missouri getting five and a half points as a favorite. Interesting. Based off what we saw on week one, what are your thoughts? Kevin Ivers: It's exciting to have these college football matchups back. So this one's on Friday on Fox, 8 o'clock Eastern, 7 Central, David Booth, Kansas Memorial Stadium. You know, these are the fan bases, you know, that we love about college football. The border war is back, old Big 12 North rivals. I remember this game in 2007. Gary Pinkle at Mizzou, Mark Mangino at Kansas. Wasn't it number one versus three? That was a wild matchup. And Kansas went on to the Orange Bowl that year. So this is a real rivalry game that means a lot to these folks right in the heart of the country. Mizzou won last year's renewal, 4231. This is Mizzou's first trip to Lawrence since 2005. Of course, it'll look quite different. Kansas, known of course, as an elite basketball program, but their administration has stepped up recently with a lot of money into the program. Lance Leipold has injected life into this program. Fantastic coach. renovated stadium. So this will be something old time Mazoo fans are probably looking forward to see what it looks like. so Mizzou ranked 23rd. Hard to know anything about these teams from week one, of course, with who they played. but I know Kansas, you know, Isaiah Marshall, the Jayhawk fans are excited about him. He's he's a problem Mizzo's gonna have to solve in this game. Gives the Jayhawks dual threat ability. So Mizou's gonna have to be disciplined in the rush lanes and all those types of things. I know Mizoo's staff looking at this game, Eli Drinkwitz talked about in his press conference they've they've highlighted, containing him. As for Mizou, you know, they've got some offensive questions despite being favored by five and a half. I know they want to be a little bit more consistent in the run game this year with Amon Hardy, one of the top backs in the nation. I think this is an opportunity game for Kansas. You know, Mizzou's probably being favored in this game just because they've been the better brand lately, the better football team. Kansas is excited, I know, to get back to surprising some people. They didn't invest all that money because there was no direction in this program. Lance Leipold had this team winning prior to the last couple of years. But after back-to-back five win seasons, this is an important year. beating a ranked SEC rival now, not Big 12 rival, of course, anymore, would give an immediate feel of upswing for the Jayhawks. So Eileen Mazou here, but Erich: you Kevin Ivers: This would not s shock me at all if if Kansas went in there and won. I love Lance Lightpold. Of course, I know you do as well. Mizzou's gonna have to stay ahead of the chains in this game. Otherwise, Kansas can cause some issues for them on defense with some of the things Lightpold's defenses like to do in this game. So those are kind of just my overarching thoughts of this game. But I'm excited that this one's on Friday night because this is a game. That would be lost in the fray, otherwise on a jam-packed Saturday. So, what say you, Mr. Erich? Erich: First, I love that it's on a Friday night. Kind of gets a showcase. Second, I think it being on a Friday night, those night weekday games just get weird for the favorites. We've seen it quite a bit. Go look at Rutgers last week if you want to see stuff get really weird on a weekday. Missouri pulled away late last year in this game and that was with a healthy Ahmad Hardy. They don't have Amon Hardy. He's still not healthy from my understanding. He's still not going to play this week. So for that reason, I have a hard time seeing them be as effective offensively as they were last year without that piece on the field. Again, Amon Hardy is, when he's healthy, I think unquestionably the best running back in the country in most people's minds right now. So that piece is missing. It's a Friday night game at home for Kansas. I'm not gonna say what I'm leaning towards because this game is gonna be in one of my categories towards the end for me. But I think you put all those things together and you can see what I'm hinting at. Real great opportunity for Kansas to take a little chunk out of the SEC power dynamic. They're the better conference, all those things. If a ranked SEC team loses to an unranked Big 12 team early, you can make of that what you will. If you get into those conference versus conference discussions. But a lot of pressure on Mizzou, because if you lose this game, you got your tough SEC schedule coming. You obviously have been nine and three in some recent years and you've been knocking on the door. So this would be a tough one to bounce back from for Mizzou if that's what happens. They said I'm leaning Kansas and I'll get into that more and one of our categories later today. So great that that's on. Friday for us because then that takes us right into. An awesome game. Arizona State at A It's the glorious 11 AM Central kickoff that you and I love. Is this the big noon? Gamer, is that a different? No, this is ABC's game, so. Kevin Ivers: It's A B C A B C Yeah. Michigan, Oklahoma's big noon. Erich: Michigan, Oklahoma's big noon. This is an interesting game. I think a real opportunity for Texas A to say, we're just because we were the scheduled darlings last year in the ICC, you know, we still have one of the better quarterbacks in the country. Kyle Field is a real disadvantage for anyone who comes here. Let's knock around a team that on paper we think we're better than, but 14 and a half points is a favorite for them felt. felt rich and again, perhaps we'll talk about that later, but what do you think about this game? Kevin Ivers: Well, it's a perfect segue and I'm gonna hint towards my categories as well, but yeah, I think AM lane fourteen and a half here is quite rich, so that might tip our viewers and yourself. to where I'm leaning in this game as far as the spread goes. I'm really excited about this game. Cool uni combo. Hopefully ASU sticks to that beautiful sparky on the side of the helmet. I love, love when they just wear the sparky. Both teams destroyed overmatched opponents. So this is, of course, our first real evaluation. 50 to 0 for AM over Missouri State. Only allowed 67 yards. Yikes. ASU hung 70 on Morgan State. So can't really glean anything. I would say I really like Cutter Bowley throwing for nearly 400 yards and six touchdowns. He looked how you should look versus an FCS opponent. For me. The most interesting matchup is ASU's defensive front against AM's offensive line. I have AM only going 7-5 this year. I do think they're going to show regression. Not because Mike Elko's a bad coach, but just because their schedule significantly ramps up this year. And I worry about those left tackles. They had issues. I went back, watched a little bit of this game, picking up some stunts in this game versus Mizzou State. ASU's Jalen Thompson and Brian Ward's pressure packages can really test that communication for the Aggies up front. I know being at Kyle Field's gonna matter for AM, but a little tidbit, Kenny Dillingham has coached at Kyle Field before Erich: Hmm. Kevin Ivers: as an assistant at Auburn. So I'm sure he'll have a plan for his young quarterback and all those communication issues. On the flip side, AM's defense will be nasty again. You know, the Antosaka comes over from Northwestern. He was a problem in the Big Ten last year. TJ Cersei and Marco Jones are tough up front. So it's going to be a massive jump, obviously, for Boley and the Sun Devils to move the ball this week. But, you know, I think if Boley can make AM defend the whole field in this game, make some plays. I like what ASU's defense can do in this game because I worry about AM's offense this year. I know Marcel Marcel Reeds back and he's dynamic, but KJ Concepcion was a baller. He's in the NFL now, and those left tackles didn't look great versus overmatched Missouri State last week. So I think the Sun Devils are a live dog here. outright win, not sure, but I I think this one goes down to the wire in college station in a really fun non-conference game and in a bounce back year perhaps for Kenny Dillingham in Tempe and maybe some regression in Age land. So I think it could be the the perfect storm and I just 14 a half is crazy to me. So I'll say that. What what do you think? Erich: love that A and the game we just talked about before with Mizzou. They're taking on these interesting big 12 components and tests. Obviously Mizzou being in the row and A being at home early. actually this is kudos to Dillingham and ASU. This is their second consecutive year where they're going on the road to face an SEC opponent. I love that. You know, I guess maybe they're not getting home and homes but they're still willing to play people and show what they're about as a program. think that kind of stuff does pay off in the long term with the exposure you get and people say, that's a pretty cool program. at that coach looks like he knows what he's doing. I would love to see Arizona State go in there. I think everyone kind of enjoys seeing A because they have the cult fans. They kind of do some weird stuff with their celebrations. They pretend to be a military school, even though they're not with the camo uniforms and things like that, which is what it is. I don't have anything against A You know, they're a cool program, but They tend to hold themselves in higher regard than their history should lend credence to. And so I'm sure there's going to be a lot of good portion of the country that would love to see them slip up here. But big test for AMM. I don't think there's much on the line here for ASU. You know, they could lose this game by three or 10 and go on and have a great season in the Big 12. But AMM, you know, they're wanting to go back to the playoffs. They got a taste last year. They don't want to regress like we're predicting they will. But if you, again, same thing as Mizzou, if you take a misstep here, it just puts so much more pressure on the rest of your schedule. And you can say that about any team that lost in week one, right? There's just a lot more pressure for you to perform the rest of the way. No one wants to lose one of their first two games and someone obviously is going to here. But home team, big crowd, always there. Kyle Field, always rocking, good opponents. I think Marcel Reed. probably does enough late to get him a win by I would say probably in the nature of me, you three to six or seven points would be where I see this going. think 14 and a half is a crazy number for this game. I don't see it. Just the nature, I mean, when has anyone beaten Kenny Dillingham by that amount in any of his seasons at ASU? mean, they took Texas to the brink a couple of years ago in the playoff and. You know, that was a Texas team that was maybe one of the better three teams in the country then. So I don't see it. I think this is going to be a great game. I love that it's on noon. ABC. It's going to be fun. Kevin Ivers: I just wanna close before we move into our next game. I wanted to mention that the heat won't be something that AM can rely on this game. Of course, yes, ASU comes from a dry heat out there in Tempi, but I I think it kinda offsets when you're playing in a hundred and five, hundred and ten degree temps, you know, it's and then it's gonna be, you know, ninety something with high dew points and humidity. you know. AS ASU's played in some pretty grisly weather, so. And I won't have that going for him. rolling into the next game. The big noon game, right? We're talking Oklahoma, Michigan now. Yes. So Noon Eastern, Fox, of course. This game of co will have tons of intrigue, no doubt, for many, many reasons. It would have. Anyways, with two blue buds getting together, but of course with what transpired last week in Ann Arbor, that's only gone up. The spread, the look-ahead line last Saturday, I was telling you, was Michigan favored by a point and a half. Shortly after that game ended Saturday night, the line shifted to Oklahoma favored by five and a half. An incredible seven-point line shift. Some people dropping some big bags at the window that have the power to to make this line shift. So those are my table setters for you. I'll let you take this one first. What's on your mind with the Sooners and the Wolverines? Erich: Well, what's on my mind is you and I talked a lot in our lives about how much we love Kyle Winningham and what he did at Utah, know, coached under Urban Meyer, learned from him and really just kept things going, Pac-12 titles. mean, God, how many times did Oregon or USC, their aspirations just get ruined by Winningham's Utah over the years in the Pac-12 when they were there. One thing that's interesting is I was listening to Urban Meyer on Joe Klatt's show. this week. And one of the things he was talking about was when he went from Utah to Florida, how shell shocked he was at the expectations, how the media covered the team. And it wasn't just this, I'm at a bigger program now. Everything's great. Like everything was scrutinized. You know, there's just so much more pressure. And I wonder if a little bit that is what's going on here as Michigan adjusts. Now, I think Winningham's a little more experienced in terms of tenure than Urban Meyer was. And I don't know that it's necessarily the same thing, but it is something to consider if we see Michigan come out again and not look clean and just struggling again. But I think what you really have to think about is, regardless of how good Western Michigan ends up being, and they do have a good roster, and we do know that they're gonna be one of the better group of six of teams this year. Michigan still looked really, really bad. And to expect them to turn that around in one week against a team that is better than they were last year defensively and is better than they were last year offensively with Matier being healthy. just, you know, this is one where I think Michigan's defense will hold up. and we'll keep them in the game for as long as they can. But if I was a betting man, I would say Oklahoma covers this and probably pulls away in the fourth quarter. And I think this one ends up being like a 24 to 27 to 13 type game. I really don't see Michigan scoring more than one touchdown. just, they couldn't score a touchdown other than a Hail Mary against Western Michigan. I Oklahoma might have the best defense in the country. Like that's what we're talking about here. They have at least one first round pick on their defensive line. Brent Venables is maybe the best defensive mind in the country. If you want an idea of how good Brent Venables is, just go look up what Clemson's record was when he was with Dabbo as the defensive coordinator with Clemson and then what Dabbo's record has been without. It's pretty eye-opening as to how much better they were. And I still think this is one of the main reasons Clemson is where they are. But my point being with all of this is, know, Michigan maybe next year gets to ship righted later this year once they're able to search through some things and the politics and Whittingham is able to settle. Their defense is still really good, but I just don't see them holding up in this game. I think Oklahoma, they looked clean and flawless last week against UTEP. You know, obviously UTEP's a group of 16, but you know, they're no slouch. And I think, you know, it would have been interesting to see if. Somehow Oklahoma could have played Western Michigan before this game and then maybe these teams play in week three so we get a comparison. But where I'm going with this is I think if Western Michigan would have played at Oklahoma last week, you would have seen Oklahoma win by at least 21. That's how good they are defensively. And I think Mattir, when healthy, is a really, really efficient quarterback, has that gamer type ability to use his legs and just absolutely take your soul on third downs. And that's what I think we're gonna see. 2713, somewhere in there. That's what I see for Oklahoma. How about you? Kevin Ivers: I understand in college football you shouldn't overact to week one, but Erich: Yeah Kevin Ivers: I cannot. Erich: when the shoe fits. Kevin Ivers: Yeah. I cannot get how bad Bryce Underwood looked on Saturday night versus Mac Opponent out of my head. I wrote an article about it today. Feel free to check that out. Shameless plug. I believe. If the first half looks anything remotely close to how it did in week one, Tommy Carr should be starting the second half in the big house. Also, did you see his comments today? Did you see that? His press Erich: Who's? Kevin Ivers: conference, Bryce Underwood. Erich: No, I have a hard time listening to him say anything, so I did not. Kevin Ivers: I I believe it or not, I feel worse for Michigan after hearing him today. So a reporter asks Bryce Underwood a question about, hey, did you see Kyle Whittingham mentioned your job security yesterday? Because Kyle Whittingham, of course, in his weekly press conference yesterday, did not give very reassuring comments about Bryce Underwood being the infinite starter going forward. Rightfully so. And Bryce Underwood's exact quote today was that's cool. I didn't see that. It's cool. Sounded like something a middle schooler might say. it's it's literally the exact opposite of being a leader and taking accountability. Which remember, he is a captain on the scene. He does have the C on the chest. I'll help him out. And what he should have said is: Yes, I've seen it. Coach is right. I need to step up and be better for my team. That would be leadership, that would be accountability. You know. So there's so many things to say about this. You nailed the exact matchup in this game by mentioning Brett Venables and that nasty defense coming to town. You know, last year they dominated Underwood. You know, he was nine of 24, 142 yards. Oklahoma pitched a first half first half shutout. I know this one shifts to the big house. But once the the ball is spotted, it it's about execution. Oklahoma's used to playing in big environments. Brett Venables gets a lot of shade for some reason there in Norman. the true fans know he's bringing toughness back to the program that Bob Stoops brought there initially, and not some of the softness and the just beauty pageant stuff Lincoln Riley brought there. The combo coverages, the pre-snap chess match game he's gonna play, overloading aside, forcing an audible by Michigan, and then switching back to his original defense, all that stuff that he's known for is going to confuse the heck out of Bryce Underwood. Western Michigan had him confused, and other defenses did last year as well. That do not have monsters like David Stone and some of the players Oklahoma's bringing in, so. and then we haven't even touched on Oklahoma's offense. John Mateer is a dog that term gets overused. He's healthy this year, he's capable of making all the throws. I do think Michigan's defense will show up. They did do a pretty good job versus you know, I know it's Western Michigan, but that's supposed to be a solid offense in the Mac this year. They did hold him to four field goals. They were able to get pressure. They were just on the field too much. Erich: Yep. Kevin Ivers: I do think Michigan will have a real defense this year. They have a lot of talent on that side of the ball. So Oklahoma will definitely be challenged there. But I think their defense sets them up in enough spots to get them in the low 20s. And yeah, I think it could be exactly an identical score to last year. It was 24-13 Sooners last year. I think it could be exactly that score again or something very similar. So and remember the name, Isaiah Satania. Breakout star, I think, this year for the Sooners at receiver. Rocky Beers at tight end. That is couldn't be more Oklahoma. I know the fans are loving that. so going Sooners here. And I did not have that going into this season, but I saw enough in week one. So that's that's where I'm at. Erich: Agreed. We reserve the right to change our opinions every week because we're wrong or because of what we see in the field. Either way, we reserve the right. Another really cool game in Provo, not too far from me, Arizona at BYU. We're getting some big 12 conference action right away. BYU favored by seven and a half. Getting an opportunity here with how Texas Tech looked last week to potentially lay it on a conference opponent who's supposed to be pretty solid themselves this year. Probably maybe a defensive type game here. You know, hard to say for sure, but I think I think BYU gets this one done. I just think again, Playing them at Provo, it's a really, really, really hard place to win. Just ask Utah. Kalani Satake's guys, they're always ready to play. They brought back a good roster. A lot of guys returned from last year to this year. There's all the reasons in the world why they're one of the favorites by many, including you and I for the Big 12 this year. I think they cover this game. I think this is probably like a 20 to 10, 24 to 13 type game. I don't think there's gonna be an offensive explosion, but both quarterbacks are back from a double overtime classic last year. know, Ken, Noaf Afidah put some magic out there for us and get Arizona upset. It's not impossible. I mean, again, I wouldn't be shocked, but. Again, I'm going with the road team here. Tough place to play. A little more travel than people would expect going all the way up there. I think it's over 500 miles. So it's not like it's a, just cause it's a border battle. It's not, what you would normally associate in terms of travel. It's both. are pretty far away from each other. Yeah. I'm going with Kalani Satake and BYU here. I think Provo is rocking. I love that it's an, is this an afternoon game? What time is it? Yes. I love that this is a 330 kick. Too often these mountain teams get slotted in those night games. So it's going to be fun to see an afternoon game there with the sun setting and hitting the mountains and so forth. Kevin Ivers: the Wasatch Mountains there. One of the settings of college football. Beautiful. Natural grass field, all about it. I'm glad you mentioned Noah Fafita, even though you're taking BYU. The guy is electric, and not enough of the country knows who he is. Not enough of the Erich: know. Kevin Ivers: country realizes that. What a fun player to watch. Like when he's scrambling around and like the play is is he wants that. He's just getting going and happy it's broken down. And that's when, as a defensive coordinator, you should be saying, you know what? So Yeah, this is a fun game. Watch out for Arizona, you know, in our Big 12 previews, we preview, we we talked about them. he's now a senior going back to Fafita. I'm getting I'm giving him his due. This is just all Fafita here. Yeah. Erich: He deserves it. Give him his due, he deserves it. Kevin Ivers: All Big 12 quarterback from last year. There's continuity in the same season, and he will not be intimidated in this environment. You know, on the flip side of things, you know, Bear Bachmeyer, he started to get his due last year. It gives you a very different challenge, right? The mobility mobility is there, but he's bigger. You better be if you're named Bear. He's looking for a little bit more contact in the open field than Fafita is. so I th this one is tough to call and You know, last year B BYU they erased that fourth quarter deficit with like four minutes to go. You know this one circled for the boys from Tucson. That was an excruciating loss for them. The other thing I want to mention in this game is Legend Glasker for BYU. A name to maybe remember. Scored three touchdowns in the opener. Don't care who it was, but he's a true freshman. You scored three touchdowns in the opener. So keep an eye out for him in that game. Adds another explosive element to BYU. Brent Brennan and Kalani Sataki actually have a genuine friendship and respect for one another. So you got a little bit of coaching connection in this game. You know. Arizona's biggest test in this game might be BYU's depth, which you would expect from the 15th ranked team of the country. There's experience pieces throughout the defense. they added some tran some transfer portal talent. of course they have that home crowd at them, so you'd want to lean slight edge to BYU, but I'm gonna wait on my prediction here because I'm gonna get into that a little bit later in the categories. So, really, Erich: Okay. Okay. Kevin Ivers: really fun, really, really fun game out west. Huge, pivotal Big 12 game. So, fired up about that. With that said, we head down south. For our afternoon ABC clash, another conference clash with number 12 Alabama rolling into Lexington to face Kentucky. And the new Will Stein regime, of course, coming over from Oregon. I'm excited to see what he does in Lexington. Of course, we both enjoyed his SEC media days, kind of his his Kurt Signetti moment. of the response to why can you win at Kentucky? And he s flatly was like, because of me. Because I'm here. Erich: Yeah. Kevin Ivers: That's fantastic. That gets people fired up. So with that said, what what do you have in this game for us, Erich? What do you think? Erich: I almost picked this for my upset of the week and I'm hesitant just cause I don't know if Kentucky has quite enough to do it. But I do think what's going to be exposed here is that Alabama still cannot run the ball well. They didn't run it great against East Carolina. Keenan Russell's scrambling kind of carry them. a lot in that game. He had like 86 rushing yards and those were all those weren't designed runs. Those were all like breakdown scramble type runs. The type of runs that you're just not going to get as many of those opportunities when you're playing better teams because the linebackers and the edge rushers and the defensive tech, the whole front seven is just way faster than it is when you're placing a group of six or an FCS opponent. So I think Alabama still has some offensive line issues. if we're going to just base off what we see in week one. Yes, Kentucky looked great against Youngstown State. Minchi looked really good. That's one thing I'll say is like you want your QB to look dominant against a lesser opponent and he did. So I think this one's gonna be more fun than people realize. 10 and a half, I'm fine with as a gambling person. I'd stay in the heck away from this game. I don't love that spread. And I could easily see this being a three points to one touchdown game in favor of Alabama. I think they just have enough to get it done. And I think Kentucky just doesn't quite have enough to get it done. But I think what's gonna happen here is Kentucky's going to... feel lot more competitive coming out of this game than maybe what people are feeling like they are based off of last year. So yes, love what Stein is doing there. I think Kentucky is going to be good as they go along. I think they're going to get people involved in the program more in terms of resources and donor money. And it's going to be exciting to see where they end up. So again, it wouldn't shock me if Kentucky is kicking a field goal to win this game, but you know, I just think I see a I think there's gonna be some points in this game. think like 30 to 27, 30, 24 Bama would be what I'm thinking. Kevin Ivers: Yeah, I'm with you on this game. Like, stay far away from the spread. It's it seems like it's like right Erich: Yeah. Kevin Ivers: it's like right on it. Yeah, like Bama by ten and a half. They had to work for it on the road. You know, and th this is part of the new Bama with Kaelin de Boer, is just these become trickier spots than they used to be for this under the Saban dynasty. You know I would normally be worried a little bit about Will Stein in this game because going from Youngstown State to Alabama is quite a violent jump in competition. But of course he came from an elite program in Oregon. He is used to game planning against Big Ten opponents and tons of talent there. The key for me in this game is Keelan Russell's legs, as you mentioned. Can he build on what he did last week at East Carolina? You know, Kentucky can contain him and do everything right, but if they lose third down and he scrambles away, that kind of changes how aggressive Will Stein wants to be on defense. If Alabama also gets comfortable running the ball, I think, and they're facing manageable second and fives, things of that nature, I think the tide skill becomes too much for Kentucky in year one of this rebuild. So that's what's gonna be what we're monitoring in this game. If Kentucky is getting Alabama in some third and longs, and Keelan Russell is a first-time starter, Scrambling for eight, nine, ten yards on third down becomes a lot harder than scrambling for four or three yards on third down. So Erich: Agreed. Kevin Ivers: that's the key in this game. I also want to see if the name change for Ryan Williams, re that he's now Ryan Coleman Williams, does does that help him, you know, draw back on his freshman season more? I'm polling for the kid because you know, he's an electrifying talent. How quickly things went, you know, every game he played in. He was the seventeen year old freshman, the seventeen year old freshman. Erich: He was right up there with Jeremiah Smith in terms of like how he was regarded. Kevin Ivers: Yes, he was he was in that same breath. And now it's Jeremiah Smith and Malachi Tony in the same breath. Maybe my guy Trent Mosley out west at Southern Cal will join that. I'm I'm really I'm pushing Erich: Maybe, maybe. Kevin Ivers: pushing that hard. Love love that kid. Erich: Hahaha. Kevin Ivers: but he had 130 yards receiving versus the Pirates last week. So, you know, several Erich: Several drops though. Several drops. Kevin Ivers: I know. I know, and that's the thing that and by all accounts is he works on it. He's on the jugs machine at six AM and he's not this prima donna receiver. And so you feel bad for a kid that works hard. You you hope he can pull it in. Cause when he does bring it in, fun fun things happen. So I'll go Bama here, not touching the spread. I think Kentucky's gonna need a couple gift turnovers in this game to actually pull the upset, but This is one that could be weird going into the fourth quarter where we're dialed into ABC as it pushes towards the early evening. I'm rolling with Bama, but I'll say they don't cover. I'll go Twenty eight twenty Tide Yeah. So that's what I'll go there. staying in the SEC, but a non-conference matchup. Rare game. I I don't think I've, you know, or we've ever seen Erich: It's a great game. Kevin Ivers: this game. Great game. Mississippi State heading way up north to the Twin Cities to row the boat. versus the Golden Gophers. Two thirty CBS, the music. Brad Nestler. If you're not switching to CBS at 3 30 Eastern time, no matter what you're watching every Saturday, or hit the record button, do something, because I like stand up in my living room and I am just I'm jazzed. I'm running through a brick wall with that music. So this should this should be a lot of fun. Tight number. the Road Dogs, the Bulldogs getting or laying excuse me, one and a half points, so essentially a true pick'em. What say you, Erich? This is this is a fun game for college football junkies like ourselves. Erich: Yeah, and this is, it's a real opportunity for both teams. I'll try to be as unbiased here as I can in a game like this. A battle of crimson colors. you know, always got to respect the color battle there when two teams with similar main colors go at it, who deserves to really wear that color or not. know, PJ Kevin Ivers: The maroon battle. Erich: Flack, say what you want about him. The antics, all that stuff. He's... Minnesota has been a stable program since he got there, basically. I mean, really from year two on, they've been solid and have never really been bad. They've only approached great once before playing and seeing what a real great team looks like towards the end of the year and get knocked back a little bit. I'll leave at that. But a real opportunity for them to knock off an SEC opponent on the rise. Going to be tough. Camario Taylor is electric at QB. And Mississippi State has a history of what they can look like when they have an electric QB in town there. The fans go crazy. So great opportunity for Mississippi State to travel and say, hey, we're going to go take out a really solid program in the Big Ten, plant our flag, or for Minnesota to... beat kind of what ranked adjacent type team, SEC that's supposedly on the rise and is, you know, looking to be a seven to eight win team this year. So really good opportunity for both teams. I think we're going to see some scoring in this game. I just, the nature of Camario Taylor, I don't think you're going to, I don't think Minnesota has enough on the defensive line. They got some good players. They got a couple of really good players on the defensive line, but I think You can game plan plan for that. I don't think they have enough the rest of the way in their front seven to make this a closer tighter game, which is probably what PJ Fleck would prefer. So for me again, true pick them. in a situation where maybe the home team was a little more, you know, as even in terms of talent on the outside and at the quarterback position, I'd probably go with them. I just think you're going to see that the team with the better quarterback oftentimes matters in these games. And I think Minnesota is going to keep this one close, but I think this is going to be a higher scoring game. And I think Mississippi State gets this done. I'm going to go 35 to 27. That's where I see this one going. think it's going to be a fun game to watch. It's a great time slot for both teams. National TV, like you said, CBS coverage. Boy, it'd be great if we could get CBS to partner with EA for the video game. That'd be fantastic if we could ever get to that point. Kevin Ivers: Mm. Erich: But yeah, Crimson Battle. I'm going to go Mississippi State. Cowbells will be ringing. Hopefully, hopefully the Mississippi State fans travel and there's a bunch of them there because I think they'll have a fun time there in Minneapolis. Kevin Ivers: Do you know, Erich, that I own a real Mississippi State cowbell? Did I tell you that? Bill Bates. Erich: I do know this. You've told me this. What a great piece of hardware. Kevin Ivers: Great piece of hardware, proudly dis displayed at home. I mean, that what a guy Bill Bates was. Shout out. Red Bay, Alabama, right on the border of Mississippi and Alabama. Used to play third base. Back in the for the Bulldogs, went to a World Series in the mid-90s and was an old customer of mine and just wanted me to have my hands on a real cowball cowbell. Because of course, you know, we would chop it up, talk college football on the phone. And yes, cool tradition. I love that you mentioned Camario Taylor. He is a guy that cannot. Be mentioned enough. The throw that he made this past weekend that went viral, where he's like in the pocket, swarmed, flat-footed, and he just whips it, just a little flick of the wrist, 60 yards in the air, effortless, perfectly in stride. If you haven't seen it, check it out. It's one of the most ridiculous things you've ever seen. It's all you need to know about this guy's talent. So I do lean the Bulldogs strictly because of Camario Taylor. Also, in the backfield, forgotten about. Fluff Bothwell, first team all name. He is a problem. Super talented. Anthony Evans, the third out wide. They got some playmakers. I am a believer in what Jeff Levy's doing at Mississippi State. A lot of good things have come out of Starkville and the culture he's building there. fun team to root for. The fan base really gets behind this team, as you said. I think they have a shot to get to a bowl this year. Maybe seven and five. That might be crazy. On the flip side, I'm not as hot for Minnesota this year. Everything you said about PJ Flecto is correct. He should absolutely get his due. You know, his press conferences and his roll the moat and Sky You Mike go go first and all that shtick is a lot. You know, people were joking this year, like they literally put him on whatever day he speaks at the Big Ten Media Days first, just to make sure the media room is awake. but no amount of espresso can prepare you for flack when he hits that podium. And he's just in the middle of the sentence already going 112 miles per hour. But that said, of course, he can coach ball and all those things. I just think it's one of those years where in my big time predictions, I know people might have been like, wow, Minnesota with a losing record. If you look at their schedule They could absolutely struggle to get to five wins, especially when you consider this is a program that has thrived on close wins for so long. That's how they win seven or eight games every year. I think the table flips this year. This is one of their early losses. I know it's at home. I know they're gonna try to control the tempo. But I don't love their roster this year. So I'm rolling with the Bulldogs. And as far as The Bulldogs going forward, I really like Zach Arnett's three three five scheme. I know that might be considered not great in the SEC, but it's also s you know, of course, designed to create confusion and pressure. And I think when you're a Mississippi State type of program, you you gotta do something like that rather than just like, hey, we're gonna line up in four or three. Like, yes, they have quality players, but they're not Georgia, obviously. So Score here. I'm gonna go. 34-24 go with the over here. 34-24 Mississippi State. Nice solid 10-point win. They easily cover. Here. Good game, but they get the job done. Erich: the last thing I'm looking for in this game. For those of you that are World Cup fans, you are familiar with the Norway fans and the cheer they would do during and after each win. Minnesota's already tried to steal it. And I think the fans are going to try to steal it as well and do it in their games. Minnesota fans come up with your own stuff. Don't steal from a European. International soccer team. That's all I'm gonna say about that. All right, Kevin Ivers: Fair. Erich: next game. Group of six action. Couple teams we've talked about quite a bit, but they deserve it. Huge game as far as the group of six playoff picture. Memphis, it's Memphis at Boise State. a lot of travel from Memphis. Memphis is doing a lot of traveling early and Boise State's favored by seven and a half. What I would say is this is Memphis. This isn't my upset of the week, but I'm picking Memphis to win this game. While I understand why Boise's favored because of the effort they put on at Oregon, there's a difference between putting a good effort against a team that maybe wasn't quite ready to play and then beating a team who's already put on a good effort themselves and won twice. Like Boise hasn't won a game. They weren't great offensively against Oregon, didn't even have 300 yards. They were efficient when the opportunities were there from Oregon and that's what allowed them to score 27 points. So I'm just going with Memphis in this just because I think we know more about them. We know they have a nasty defensive line. We know they can run the ball. We know they have a quarterback who's a pretty good thrower and can run himself. And I just think Memphis has more advantages. at the top end in regards to what they can do on the defensive line at wide receiver net running back. So I appreciate that Boise's favored, but I just, I feel like I know a lot more about Memphis and what they're going to bring to the table. And they've already done it. You know, the game at UNLV, we saw what they did there in the second half. Then they came home. They were 10 point favorites over Arkansas State. Again, Arkansas State's no sluff and they... covered that spread as well. think they won 42-24, avoided the hangover. So now they get to go be an underdog again. And I think it's a great spot for Huff in terms of narrative and his team. So yeah, Boise favored, I'm going Memphis. I have to go with what my eyes have shown me and I can't base what I've seen off of a solid effort and a loss against a familiar opponent. for Boise. So Memphis to me, I think they're winning this game. I think we're going to see points in this game. I'm saying 31 to 28. Memphis upset the clear cut G6 favorite coming out of this game. Kevin Ivers: Okay, okay. I respect that, Erich. A little bit of contrarian. You make some really good points. you got me kind of thinking. This is a fantastic game. This is a really cool matchup. So great that we're getting. An early season big G6 game where both these teams have proven how good they are, not only historically, these programs, but right away in the early portion of week one. yeah, talking through this game, first thing that jumps out is Boise favored by seven and a half. It's like, is that a sucker bet? What's going on here in Vegas? As good as Memphis looked, it's like I I get it's at Boise. I get that Boise's the most impressive ON1 team in the country taking Oregon to the wire. But man, Memphis catching seven and a half seems rich. I you know, how about how about like you know, four and a half, something like that? I you know, I get the blue turf and everything, but as far as the game itself You know, everything you said about the Tigers and true and what a I I I'll come back to it. Those that have listened to the show will hear me say it again. If you haven't, it comes back to the Memphis defensive line. Not every group of six Team has a line like this. Jamon Tapp, shout out again as an animal. Elijah Kinsler, Taylor Burton. The line goes on and on and on. It's the reason they went into Vegas and beat UNLV. They can generate pressure without having to blitz. It's the reason they were able to overwhelm Arkansas State in the end. You have that, that travels. That's gonna that's gonna show up in Boise on Saturday night. The question for me with Boise is the emotional recovery. Erich: Yeah. Kevin Ivers: You know, you spend all offseason getting ready for Oregon, you nearly pull the upset, and then seven days later you have to face this really good Memphis team we're talking about. And you gotta deal with Jalen Carter tackling him. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Memphis's phenomenal back. 183 yards last week. what do you have? Like four touchdowns. So I'm gonna say all that to pick Boise. Erich: Hahaha Kevin Ivers: So how do you how do you like that? that Erich: The old League courses who switch them up right at the end. Kevin Ivers: Yep. Not so fast, my friend. I that's simply. I know it's a cop out, but it's the blue turf. It's the home field advantage. Boise just so rarely loses there. Spencer Danielson is a heck of a coach. I think they get off the mat. I think they squeak this out. I think this is an unbelievable game. Down to the wire. I'll go. 31-27 Boise, one of my favorite football scores. A blend of really good offense, good defense being played. I'm not quite sure Marcus Stokes is ready to win a game like this on the road. And I think Boise's gonna be able to do enough to slow down Carter. And I'll go with the more proven quarterback in Maddox Madsen. But Yeah, this this is an absolute dogfight. Cannot wait. and before Erich: I love it. Kevin Ivers: USA Network has this game, do better. That's a slap in the face to this game. Like, it's like gotta like go off the reservation to some move like movie channel. Like who I I could see them like the Titanic's gonna be playing and all of a sudden like this game's gonna come on. Like that's that's weird. Get this thing on a real sports channel. Anyways, what's next, Erich? Erich: So next we have a game that falls under the, I trust what my eyes showed me last week type narrative. San Diego State going to UCLA. UCLA is favored by 11 and a half. San Diego State is supposed to be pretty good team this year in the group of six. Well, they're one of the Pac-12 teams now, if I'm not mistaken. They're no longer in the Mountain West. Kevin Ivers: Yes. You know what? Reese Davis made a good point last week. The way to remember the new Pac-12 is every team that they have state in the name. A little tidbit for you. Thank you, Reese. Erich: Gotcha. Love that. So. I know there's, my eyes tell me that UCLA is pretty good. And I think they're going to show that they are pretty good again. This week at home, I think the Rose Bowl is going to have a good crowd in it. There's optimism, there's excitement. I'm going to talk about this game again in one of my categories, but I think we're going to see UCLA run the ball again. I think just when you see a team that can run the ball, that can create holes and their running backs know how to navigate two way threat at QB, it's just a philosophy that tends to work against teams even that have strong defenses because do we just stop the line or if we do that, we got to worry about play action and this guy has legs. He can also has a pretty good arm. So not much of a road travel game here for San Diego state, I I just think that UCLA is much better than people are talking about right now. And I think they're going to win this game similar to what you saw against Cal last week in terms of score. But I don't think there's going to be a point where San Diego State like makes a run and ties them. So I'm looking at like 38-21, 38-24 all UCLA. I think they run for at least 200 yards again. I think Nico has another good game. Hopefully doesn't throw an interception this game like he did in the last one, but I just think UCLA is really good. I think Bob Chesney has these guys doing what you need to do to win big in games like this. And I think you're going to see a disparity of talent come through, especially in the second half. Kevin Ivers: I'll tell you one thing. If UCLA doesn't have the Rose Ball at least half full for this Bob Chesney era, like shame on them. And I'm not hopeful. 415 kick for them, that's probably prime surfing time. Although, isn't it like late afternoon, like when like sharks come out and like eat you? So I don't know. If if if they're not doing that, they'll be at some fancy sushi restaurant and I hope I'm wrong. UCLA fans get into this era. You could see an immediate change last week when they went into Cal and put up 45. Impressive win versus the sturdy Golden Bears in Memorial Stadium. A rockin' Memorial Stadium. Kudos to that California fan base bringing the noise. About the game, I think Sedusu, as I affectionately call them, is dangerous enough to make this competitive, but it's this is a significant size or step up in in weight class with size and athleticism. You know, I know San Diego State scored fifty three points on Portland State. Well it's Portland State for a reason, no offense. Sorry, pilots, or Portland's the pilots. I'll I'll have to look up what Portland State is. That's that's bad. That's on me. but the Bruins ran for nearly 300 yards. Wayne Knight is the name to know for the Bruins offensively. Of course, he followed Bob Chesney from JMU and has continued his winning ways. I or not winning ways, his his rushing ways, I should say. What I love about that is Nico does not have to carry this UCLA offense anymore. I know that's a mouthful to say in week one, but I just believe in Chesney you could see what their game plan was, what their direction is gonna look like going forward. They're deep at running back. So unless Lucky Sutton for San Diego State goes crazy at quarterback, he's certainly a a good player and can make things happen. But I'm with you. I like UCLA to cover here. I'm gonna say. Thirty-eight seventeen Bruins. Erich: I like it. Well, I think it's time to talk about what, well, everyone's talking about this week. The Kevin Ivers: Ha ha. Erich: juggernaut rematch of Julian Sane versus Arch Manning in terms of QBs. A lot of opinions on this one, one way or another. Kevin Ivers: yeah. Erich: I think going into the season, I think you were saying, as he wins this game, I was saying Texas wins this game. I am sticking with my prediction. Although I almost second-guessed myself today, go into this one. was like, Nope, I'm going to hold firm. I like what I saw last week. And I also think Ohio state didn't run great against ball state last week. If you're going to nitpick, although Ball State maybe was just like deciding we can't stop them in the past game. Let's just stop the run. Maybe that's their strategy. I'm going with the home team in this one. I think these teams are about as even as they can get in terms of two top five teams playing each other at this point in the season. I think Arch Manning is a little better than Julian Saint at this point because of his running ability. Although Julian Saint is an incredible thrower of the ball. Ohio State probably has a slight advantage at wide receiver because of Jeremiah Smith, although Cam Coleman and Ray Ringo are really, really good for Texas as well. So again, you can just kind of go back and forth like that at every position for both of these teams. Must be nice to be a fan of one of these teams and just be that loaded. Spread is one and a half favoring Texas and rightfully so, this could go either way. I'm going with the home team. They get their revenge. And I'm gonna also say this. I don't think, I know both these teams have difficult schedules on paper. But from what I saw conference wise, top to bottom last week for both the SEC and the Big Ten, either of these teams lose. I don't think it's a detriment to either of them than doing what they need to do to finish at least 10 or two and better and go to the playoff. Nothing I saw last week makes me believe that whoever loses this team is on the outside looking into the playoff. I think it's the exact opposite. think, you know, short of one team just getting blown out by the other, both these teams come out. of this game confident that they can go into their conference and still be one of the top teams in that conference. So I'm going to Texas. I'm going to say another, I think there's going be a little more scoring this year than last year, just cause there's more familiarity and the Cubies are now in their second year starting. So I'm going to go Texas wins a burner 24, 21, field goal late puts the wave for the home team. Kevin Ivers: I thought I had Texas in this game initially, but I could be wrong. I could be wrong. I Erich: Okay. Kevin Ivers: I definitely have Ohio State losing two games in the regular season this year. This being one of them, for sure. Although for sure is weird to say. It that was that was dumb. but It's it's interesting looking at the spread. You know, Texas favored by a point and a half. They say home field is is three points, so that means odd ma odds makers think that Ohio State is the more talented team here, actually. but that doesn't really mean anything. everyone knows this is a clash of the Titans. I'm excited that it's in week two. They both got their tune-ups last week. And I think we'll see an aesthetically more pleasing game this year than we did last year. I'm Erich: Agreed. Kevin Ivers: with you. I I am leaning Texas here. And not leaning. I I am picking them here in a of course a very highly competitive game. I just think they have more trusted players back. And absolutely love what they did in the portal. To me, the matchup that swings this game in Texas's favor is yes, another year of Arch Manning where I think he's continually to ascend and be close to the player everyone wants him to be and thinks he can be. But it's just all those defensive players that Ohio State lost to the league. Sonny Styles, Caleb Downs, pick whoever one you want that went super high in the draft. That matters. That was generational talent on that defense. And now you have to deal with Cam Coleman, as you mentioned, and Ryan Wingle on the outside, who Arguably the best tandem. You know, Jeremiah Smith is the best receiver, you know, probably followed by Malachi Tony, but this combo is deadly. And then Hollywood Smothers in the backfield. You know, this team's loaded. Everyone knows they're loaded. You know, a lot of people's national championship pick. where the rubber meets the road in this game is of course the trenches. You know, Ohio State has questions along their offensive line. That was their issue last year. Versus the elites, you know, can you play smash mouth football? So we'll get some first answers, of course, in this game for Ohio State. You know, Texas is one is going to want to make Julian Saiyan play under pressure. Are they able to generate that? If they're not, that's when Julian Sand's at his best. You know, when things break down a little bit, that's where people still have questions about his game. On the other side, you know, Texas run game, they still need to prove can they consistently move versus an elite front in Ohio State? I think they can because. Of course, Ohio State reloaded. I just mentioned the players they lost. Is is there still exceptional NFL talent that's better than just about everyone? Yes. But some of that experience and a Caleb Downs, a leader like that that called out the defense, that matters. Will put will Matt Patricia have a phenomenal game plan? Yes. But I think Texas's road graders on that O-line are gonna be able to get to that second level a couple times. And there's not a player like Sonny Styles that's there. So I think that tips the scale. Texas gets their revenge in this game. Of course, it's in Austin. Place is gonna be rocking. Two blue bloods, glorious uniforms that never change going at it. Although Ohio State needs to be better. Sometimes they wear something they shouldn't wear. So I am going hook here. Longhorns, score Ugh, wow. Another one of my favorite scores. I will go. What's the over-under in this game? What is it? 49 and a half? Erich: 40 and a half. no, 49 and a half, yeah. Kevin Ivers: Forty nine and a half. I'm gonna go Twenty seven. twenty four horns. Erich: I like it. Well. Two more games and then we'll get to our categories. A game that will not feature as much star power, but it is interesting because it's normally a weird scoring game, low scoring every year. Iowa State at Iowa. Obviously Iowa State has won three in a row against Iowa, coaching change, player turnover. I don't know the last time a team was favored of a spread of 14. in this game, but Iowa is getting 14 points. I don't want to spend a ton of time on this one. The main reason I just want to say is I just want to see what this rivalry looks like with Matt Campbell no longer being at Iowa State. Is it still a close game somehow because of just what the game is? Or is it you guys lost a lot, you don't have a chance, we're going to... We're gonna lay it on you and get one back here that we haven't had been able to win in a few years. I'm gonna go, it's how do you pick Iowa State in this game? Iowa faded by 14. I think that feels accurate. I'm gonna go Iowa 21, Iowa State six. Not a terribly high scoring game, but I think Iowa is going to smother them and we'll do enough late to get to 21 points and win this game. What about you? Kevin Ivers: Yeah, I think he makes some good points. I I wanna see what Jimmy Rogers brings to this rivalry. For the Cyclones, of course, Matt Campbell moving on to Penn State and the eleven phenomenal years he had there. That that changes thing. That was such a good coaching matchup with Campbell versus Ferenc or Ference. The the rivalry has flipped recently, you know. The Cyclones have won two straight and three of the last four against Iowa. consecutive, including consecutive wins in Iowa City. You know, this was dominated for Iowa for a while. but completely different program for Iowa State. Picked last pretty much by consensus by every media person out there. I mean. As rebuilt as a roster as there could be. So the encouraging thing in week one, I know it was versus Southeast Missouri State, but you know, Arkansas State transfer Jalen Rayner, you know, accounted for four touchdowns. He gives you something with his legs in addition to the passing game. That that matters when you're rebuilding like this, having a mobile quarterback can help when things break down. The Hawkeys, of course, hammered Northern Illinois 40 to zero, and it's one of those games I think we mentioned last time where just like people talk about in college basketball, are things starting to shift where normally a Northern Illinois program, and I know they're not like some of the NIU teams in the past, but because of the way Iowa plays, they keep other teams in the game. And You worry about programs like Northern Illinois that get poached, all their best players, and you see more results that are like, hmm. Normally that would maybe be a little more competitive. But, anyways, Kamari Moulton for Iowa ran extremely well. He's a talented back, underrated back in the Big Ten. Offensive line controlled the game, go figure for Iowa. The story for them is at receiver. For the Hawkeyes. the Diaz kid. I'm blanking on his first name right now. who's the Iowa receiver that broke out? To Tony Diaz. Tony D Diaz. Weird seeing Iowa have an electric receiver. It's it's quite a quite a jolt to the system when you see that. Maybe their last one was like Marvin McNutt to take us back. But I think most people would even go all the way back to Tim Dwight. Now, I'm not saying he's Tim Dwight, but it was like, hey, some you could just see the electricity. So I know fans are fired up in Iowa City about that. of course, Phil Parker has been there for about 93 years. the defense looks the same. granted, we'll find out a little bit more versus power for competition. This one's under the nut, under the lights, NBC primetime. I do like Iowa here. Will it be close as the Cyhawk matchup always is? It's weird seeing Iowa lay 14. Gotta be the highest spread for this game. And I I would say in all of the Campbell Frenziers, I I I don't have proof, but Erich: Yeah. Kevin Ivers: what you think? Erich: Very likely. That's why I say it's gonna be interesting just to see what does it look like now that Matt Campbell's not there. So what are you thinking about the score for that one? Kevin Ivers: I'll go 2613. You always have to have something kind of a little weird for this game. I would say barely covers just because I believe in the fight for the Psyhawk. Even though Campbell is in Happy Valley, I'm gonna have him just sneaking in there. 26-13 hawk eyes. How about you? Erich: I like it. I already gave my score. 21-6. Yeah. Kevin Ivers: You did, my fault. Yes, you had twenty one six. Sorry about that. Erich: All right, let's move on. That's enough Iowa, Iowa state talk. Kevin Ivers: I'm not sure it was enough. Erich: A lot of talk to get to a fairly low scoring prediction. All right, one of my favorite games before we get into our categories, Arkansas at night, going to Salt Lake City to play Utah. It's a great game because I think what's going to happen is we're going to see Utah really running up on Arkansas. Utah is a really good team. think they're going to show why they were one of the favorites in this team. I think Devon Dempere is going to put on a show. Arkansas did not look great against their FCS opponent last week. While as on the other foot, Utah looked incredible in their game and against a lesser opponent. So if you're able to tune into this one a little bit, I think it'll be a fun game to watch. I think Utah is going to put on a show. Their favorite by 12 and a half. I think that feels right. This is a long travel for Arkansas night game at Utah. Those are tough to win. We saw Florida struggle with that against a Utah team that was on a, on the downswing because of injuries at QB that year, a couple of years ago, Graham Mertz throwing several interceptions. It's just a tough place to play in general, but this is a really good Utah team and I expect them to win big. I'm going Utah. 41 Arkansas 13. I think this is a Kevin Ivers: Whoa. Erich: a beat down. And a good opportunity for Utah to really plant their flag against the team that hopefully gets better. You and I love the hogs. We want them to get better, but I just think they have a ways to go. Kevin Ivers: Okay. Wow. Beat down. Out in Salt Lake. I'll tell you one thing: give the Hogs credit for making this thousand-mile trip out to Rice Eccles Stadium, which is a bear for opponents to play in. You know, SEC teams get chastised for not doing these types of things. So Ryan Silverfield, I don't know if anybody knows what they're getting into when they head into Rice Eccles, unless you're a familiar conference opponent. One of the absolute hardest. Places to play in the country. The Must, which is what their renowned student section is known for. It's a red out. And they've won 18 straight home openers. And Saturday night's game, I don't know if you knew it, but Erich Weddle of Utah Legend. He's going into the Ring of Honor. So a phenomenal all-American in his day. Had a long career for, I believe, the Chargers. Tons of Pro Bowls. One of the best safeties in the game in the last number of years. So that's only gonna add to it. Utah could not have looked better in the debut. I don't care who they're playing. I know they're playing the Spuds from Idaho. They beat them 66-14. Yes, I know it's the Vandals. I call them the Spuds. But 66 points, I mean 600 and some yards of offense. They had one penalty. Those are the types of things you're expecting from Michigan. But Devin Dampier is still the engine for the Uts. Seems like he's been there forever. Erich: This is only his second year as a starter. Kevin Ivers: I know. I know. Came from New Mexico. Just one of those guys that's a ball player. He looked great. He's now eleven and two as their starting quarterback. One of the biggest developments of that week, and I know, I know it was Idol, but they were replacing essentially their whole offensive line. They looked really good. You know, we are on college football, nobody's we are big into judging O-lines versus anybody. And I know I say that kind of tongue-in-cheek, but it's true. You can really tell. You watch that line of scrimmage and you watch those helmets. Who's pushing who forward? There was none of that in that game. It was all Utes. And then Weyshawn Parker, legitimate partner in the backfield for Dampier. He's a stud. So, can Arkansas match that physicality? I say no. I think the Utes get downhill in this game. The home field advantage is too much. The travel's too much. Ryan Silverfield's got a lot. To build up there in Fayetteville. We'll see if he can get it done. Of course, they're gonna bring SEC athletes. They'll make plays. I don't have 41-13, but I certainly have Utah comfortable. I do think they cover. I'll roll 36. Thirty-six sixteen. I love those those weird scores. I think the Hogs maybe score late, go for two, look at make it look better. Something like that. But Utah, pretty big. But a little respect for the Hogs. Come on, Erich. Erich: Look, if I would have seen a good performance from them last week, I would love to this game to be a barn burner. But we saw two teams in different places in their lives last week or in their journeys, as they say. And one of those teams now has to travel to the other, which is a really tough place to play. But yes, I again, you and I are hard guys. We want to see them back. We want to see them relevant in the SEC. And hopefully that's what we see in the coming years. So that's our coverage of the games. Let's get to our categories, Kevin. Let's go you first this week. You are the judge of environments. the shape of stadiums, the look and feel of the atmosphere. Are there mountains in the backgrounds? Do they properly display fall colors in their foliage when it's that time? What is our environment of the week? Or should I say, is it the obvious choice for the environment Kevin Ivers: Huh. Erich: of the week? Kevin Ivers: It is the obvious choice. We kind of buried the lead with having Texas, Ohio State like seven games in. But we're college football nobodies, and we we want to give everyone love. We know that game's taking a lot of oxygen out of the air. But yes, leading off. Our environment of the week. That is the pick. Buckeyes rolling into Austin. Gonna be electric. Of course, you'll see Matthew McConaughey on the sideline throwing up the horns. That place is gonna be juiced. All 102,000 and burnt orange. You'll see a little bit of scarlet and gray, of course. They travel extremely well. It is going to be loud. Still wish they had natural grass there in Austin. Beggars can't be choosers. It is a beautiful stadium. I've been there. I have walked around there before. Really cool sights around the stadium. The barbecue is gonna be immaculate. The only thing that would make this better is if Brent Musker Musberger were saying was saying, you are looking live when they come in Erich: Hahaha. Kevin Ivers: with that aerial shot of the stadium. But those are the glory days. Hopefully, Fowler and Herbie. Give us a great intro and we get to see some of those parking lots with the brisket and everything else they do down there. but yeah, that is your environment of the week. You are the color palette of the week, of course, the commissioner. I have no doubt that you're gonna pick a fantastic game. I'm excited for this, as always. What do you have, my friend? Erich: Yes, being the commissioner of Jersey colors and college football is a role while not yet confirmed by Congress and self appointed by myself. I still take it very seriously. This week there were a lot of good choices. Even the game you just talked about was a good choice. Mizzou at Kansas, you know, just a lot of good options out there. But for me, sometimes the contrast is what wins the day. and the red, black and white of San Diego State going to the Rolls-Bowl against the powder blue and gold of UCLA is tremendous. It will look great. You will never question which players on which team you see it. You know exactly who's who. And it's just going to look great. So to me, the contrast, hopefully it is supplemented with a well attended Rose Bowl by the UCLA fans to make it even better. But this week's color palette of the week award goes to UCLA hosting San Diego State. Kevin Ivers: Just be beautiful pick. Well articulated. I had no doubt you nailed it. Erich: Hahaha Kevin Ivers: I didn't. It's just a phenomenal, it's just phenomenal. That leads us into the point spread letdown of the week. How about you jumpstart us here? What do you got? Erich: Yeah, I got Kansas State getting 18 and a half over Washington State. That just seems rich to me. know, what did we see in either of these games to lead us to believe that Kansas State's going to actually beat Washington State by over three touchdowns, almost three touchdowns. Clearly Washington State is at least slightly improved from where they were last year. All you to do is watch them compete pretty well in the Apple Cup against Washington last week. So for me, point spread let down of the week, Kansas State getting 18 and a half over Washington State. If you're a gambling person, gambling man, stay away from it. Don't bet it. Spend your money wisely elsewhere. That's my let down of the week for point spread. Kevin, how about you? Kevin Ivers: What a cool game, man. If if this was the late 90s, early 2000s, these teams were like consistently in the top 10. You know, your Bill Snyder, Michael Bishop teams, your Ryan Leif, Jason Gesser, Wazoo. I mean, man, Erich: Yep. Kevin Ivers: programs. Love those type of programs. Great pick. Love that we get a mention of that game. I. Am going with Sparky here. Give me the Sun Devils rolling into the 12th man. Talked about it earlier. Getting 14 and a half is wild for a Kenny Dillingham team. The forks coming in there. They might win outright. I won't go that far, but maybe like. Thirty to twenty four AM. Sparky's driving late. It's fourth down and goal from the twelve. Pass just goes begging in the end zone. A survives. There's no way they should be laying fourteen and a half versus the Sun Devils. You heard it here first. I'm fired up about that game kicking off Saturday. Erich: Yeah, that's a good choice. I almost picked that one as well. But speaking of upset in the apple cart, if you will, let's go right into our upsets of the week. Kevin Ivers: Let's do it. Erich: Who are you taking? In fact, I think I know who you're taking. I don't like it, but I'm let you say it. Kevin Ivers: I'm getting crazy in the Big 12, you know, because Oklahoma State Mario lost to Tulsa. Might as well just throw all caution to the win. Give me the Arizona Wildcats and Noah Fafita rolling into Provo. They're bitter about last year. They threw that game away. September 12th has been circled. The Wildcats come in to Provo, Utah. And take down the BYU Cougars, who I think do recover and find their way to Arlington and make the Big 12 championship still. But we look back on this and go, wow, they had to run the table and make quite a run to get there. Arizona, baby. Go Wildcats. Erich: Okay, all right. You know, maybe this will Kevin Ivers: Who do you got? Erich: be on our where we were right where we were wrong recap episode after the games. We'll see. I'm taking I alluded to it earlier. I'm taking Kansas to upset Mizzou at home. Missouri's not at full strength. It's a Friday night game. Weird things happened on these Thursday and Friday night games. Mizzou pulled ahead late last year in this game to win at home. I think Kansas completes the revenge tour here and gets one back against them. Cool to see this game being played, border battle. I'd love to see them just make this an every year thing. There's no reason not to. Then you're kind of scratching that itch of having your set power for opponent every year. And then you can schedule your cupcakes outside of those games if those teams want to. But this game, I think Kansas gets it done. Lance Leipold. gets a good signature win to start the year for Kansas. I think they'll need it to really set the tone for the rest of the year, but that's my upset of the week. Kevin Ivers: I like it. Game of the week. Erich: Game of the Week, our final category, probably the easiest pick and most obvious pick that we'll have in this. And you and I both have OSU at Texas. Sometimes you go with the obvious. Kevin Ivers: Yes. Erich: There's no reason to overthink it. A lot of great games this week. This is a playoff preview type game. Stars on both sides, incredible atmosphere. It checks all the boxes. right smack in the middle of the afternoon. We'll be tuning out of our games and recording those to watch them later so we can watch this game. It's just that type Kevin Ivers: No re Erich: of atmosphere. Kevin Ivers: Remember this one's this one's under the lights. It i it's the prime Erich: yeah, Kevin Ivers: yeah. Erich: you're right. It is the prime time game. Well, it conflicts with Kevin Ivers: Yeah, it was Erich: my game. So either way I'll be recording my game watching this one. Kevin Ivers: Y Yeah, yeah, you're versus the old leather necks there from Macomb. yeah, no, no overthinking here. This it's everything you said. That this is what college football's about. Like Ohio State, Texas doesn't get too bigger than that. Erich: It does not. So that is our game of the week. And that is the conclusion of our week two preview. So enjoy the games, enjoy your Saturday, and we will come back to you with our next episode, which will be the recap, and we'll record that either Sunday or Monday. And we'll see you then. Kevin Ivers: Thanks for listening, folks. Good luck to all your teams in week two. We'll see you later, guys.